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ISO 4217
"Currency code" redirects here. Not to be confused with currency sign. s display at a Bureau de change listing ISO 4217 codes. Erroneously, however, the Brunei dollar is displayed as BRD.]] ISO 4217 is a standard by the , which describes currency designators, , and references to minor units in three tables: *Table A.1 – List of currency and funds codesCurrent currencies & funds *Table A.2 – Current fund codesCurrent funds *Table A.3 – List of codes for historic denominations, currencies, and fundsHistoric denominations The tables, history, and current discussions are all maintained by SIX Interbank Clearing.SIX Interbank Clearing The ISO 4217 code list is used globally for and . In a number of countries, the ISO codes for more common currencies are so publicly well-known that exchange rates published in s or solely use these codes to describe the different currencies, rather than the translated currency names or questionable currency symbols. These codes are also used on and international tickets to remove any ambiguity about the prices. Global Financial DataGlobal Financial Data has extended the ISO 4217 code list in its Global History of CurrenciesGlobal History of Currencies by defining four letter codes for countries and currencies that had ceased to exist before two letter ISO country codes were assigned. (That information is considered proprietary to Global Financial Data.Global Financial Data website Terms Of Use and personal communication confirming that the terms of use apply to all pages on the web site.) Formation of codes The first two letters of the code are usually the letters of the country codes of the country the currency is from, while the third letter is usually the initial of the currency itself. For example, Myanmar's currency code is MMK–MM for "Myanmar", and K for kyat. This eliminates problems caused by common currency names such as dollar, franc, or pound, which are used in several different countries, each having significantly different values. Also, if a currency is revalued, the last letter of the currency code is changed to distinguish it from the older currency. In some cases, the code's last letter is the initial for "new" in the country's most spoken language; sometimes the currency can outlast the term "new" itself (for example, the code of the Polish złoty is PLN. Other changes can also be seen. For example, the Russian ruble changed from RUR to RUB, where the B comes from the third letter of "ruble". There is also a three-digit code number assigned to each currency, in the same manner that there is a three-digit number assigned to each country as a part of . This numeric code is usually the same code as the code for the corresponding country. For example, the Lao kip has a code of 418, which is the same as the country code for Laos. This standard also defines the relationship between the major and minor currency units. Often, a minor currency unit has a value of of the major currency, but a value of is also common. A small number of currencies do not have a minor currency unit at all. In others, the major currency unit has such little value that its minor currency unit is no longer used generally (e.g. Japanese sen, yen). This is indicated by the standard currency exponent. For example, the United States dollar has an exponent of 2, while the Japanese yen has an exponent of 0. Mauritania does not use a decimal division of units, setting one ouguiya equal to five khoums, and in Madagascar it is similar, with one ariary equal to five iraimbilanja. ISO 4217 does not only give currencies codes, but also precious metals (i.e. gold, palladium, platinum, silver) by definition expressed per one troy ounce compared to the United States dollar, and other entities for international finance, such as Special Drawing Rights. There are also codes used for the purpose of testing (XTS) or for showing no currency transactions (XXX). All of these codes begin with the letter, "X". The four precious metals start with an "X" and then their ; gold, for example is XAU. ISO 3166 never assigns country codes beginning with the letter "X", because the codes are assigned exclusively for private custom use (never for official codes); for instance, the country codes ( , 9th ed.), based upon ISO 3166, use "X" codes for imaginary exercise countries ranging from XXB for "Brownland" to XXR for "Redland", as well as for commands such as XXE for or XXS for . As a result, ISO 4217 can use "X" codes for non-country specific currencies without the risk of causing confusion with future country codes. Supranational currencies, such as the CFP franc, CFA franc BEAC and BCEAO, and the East Caribbean dollar are normally also represented by codes beginning with the letter "X". The euro, however, is represented by EUR (EU is an ISO 3166 code reserved for lists relating to the European Union). The euro's predecessor, however, the European Currency Unit (ECU), was given the code XEU. History developed the standard of currency codes.}} During 1973, the ISO Technical Committee 68 decided upon the development of codes for representing currencies and funds in any application of trade, commerce, or banking. During the 17th session, which was held in February 1978, of the related UN/ECE, experts agreed that the three-letter alphabetic codes for the ISO 4217 international standard, "Codes for the representation of currencies and funds", would be suitable to use in international trade. Over time, new currencies are introduced and older currencies are replaced. Frequently, such changes are due to new governments (either via war or a new constitution), treaties between countries standardizing a currency, or revaluation of currency because of excessive inflation. Consequently, the list of codes must be updated from time to time. The maintenance agency (MA) of ISO 4217 codes, SIX Interbank Clearing, is responsible for maintaining the list of codes. Active codes This is a list of all active codes for official ISO 4217 currency names: United States dollar explanation The United States dollar actually has three assigned codes: USD, USS (same day), and USN (next day). In accordance to UN/CEFACT recommendation 9, paragraphs 8-9 ECE/TRADE/203, 1996, available online : 8. In applications where monetary resources associated with a currency (i.e. funds) need not be specified and where a field identifier indicating currency is used, the first two (leftmost) characters are sufficient to identify a currency–example: US for United States dollars for general, unspecified purposes where a field identifier indicating currency is present. (A field identifier can be a preprinted field heading in an aligned document or a similarly-agreed application in electronic transmission of data.) 9. In applications where there is a need to distinguish between different types of currencies, or where funds are required as in the banking environment, or where there is no field identifier, the third (rightmost) character of the alphabetic code is an indicator, preferably mnemonic, derived from the name of the major currency unit or fund – example: USD for general, unspecified purposes; USN for United States dollar next-day funds, and USS for funds which are immediately available for Federal Reserve transfer, withdrawal in cash or transfer in like funds (same-day funds). Since there is no need for such a distinction in international trade applications, the funds codes have not been included in the Annex to the present Recommendation. Circulated currencies without a currency code Some territories are not included in ISO 4217 because their currencies are either: *not per se an independent currency but a variant of another currency *a legal tender only issued through commemorative banknotes and coins *a currency of a . These currencies are: #Alderney pound (1:1 pegged to the pound sterling) #Cook Islands dollar (1:1 pegged to the New Zealand dollar) #Faroese króna (1:1 pegged to the Danish krone) #Guernsey pound (1:1 pegged to the pound sterling) #Isle of Man pound (1:1 pegged to the pound sterling) #Jersey pound (1:1 pegged to the pound sterling) #Kiribati dollar (1:1 pegged to the Australian dollar) #Maltese scudo (1:0.24 pegged to the euro ) #Somaliland shilling (state of issue viewed as part of Somalia) #Transnistrian ruble (state of issue viewed as de jure part of Moldova) #Tuvaluan dollar (1:1 pegged to the Australian dollar) The following non-ISO codes are however, sometimes used commercially: Historic currency codes Several currencies had official ISO 4217 codes and currency names before they were replaced by the euro or other currencies. This table shows the ISO 4217 codes of former currencies and their common names. References * Category:Currency Category:Economics